World English Bible · The divided kingdom
1 Kings 20
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Ben the king of gathered all his army together; and there were thirty-two kings with him, with horses and chariots. He went up and besieged , and fought against it. He sent into the city to king of Israel and said to him, "Ben says, 'Your silver and your gold are mine. Your wives also and your children, even the best, are mine.'" The king of Israel answered, "It is according to your saying, my , O king. I am yours, and all that I have." 5The came again and said, "Ben says, 'I sent indeed to you, saying, "You shall me your silver, your gold, your wives, and your children; but I will send my servants to you tomorrow about this time, and they will search your house and the houses of your servants. Whatever is pleasant in your eyes, they will put it in their hand, and take it away."'" Then the king of Israel called all the of the land, and said, "Please notice how this man seeks mischief; for he sent to me for my wives, and for my children, and for my silver, and for my gold; and I didn't deny him." 8All the and all the people said to him, "Don't listen, and don't consent." 9Therefore he said to the of Ben , "Tell my the king, 'All that you sent for to at the first I will do, but this thing I cannot do.'" The departed and brought him back the message. Ben sent to him, and said, "The gods do so to me, and more also, if of will be enough for handfuls for all the people who follow me." The king of Israel answered, "Tell him, 'Don't let him who puts on his armor brag like he who takes it off.'" When Ben heard this message as he was drinking, he and the kings in the pavilions, he said to his servants, "Prepare to attack!" So they prepared to attack the city. Behold, a came near to king of Israel, and said, " says, 'Have you seen all this great multitude? Behold, I will it into your hand today. Then you will know that I am .'" said, "By whom?" He said, " says, 'By the young men of the princes of the provinces.'" Then he said, "Who shall begin the battle?" He answered, "You." Then he mustered the young men of the princes of the provinces, and they were two hundred and thirty-two. After them, he mustered all the people, even all the , being seven thousand. They went out at noon. But Ben was drinking himself drunk in the pavilions, he and the kings, -two kings who helped him. The young men of the princes of the provinces went out first; and Ben sent out, and they told him, saying, "Men are coming out from ." He said, "If they have come out for peace, take them alive; or if they have come out for war, take them alive." 19So these went out of the city, the young men of the princes of the provinces, and the army which followed them. They each killed his man. fled, and Israel pursued them. Ben the king of escaped on a horse with horsemen. The king of Israel went out and struck the horses and chariots, and killed with a great slaughter. The came near to the king of Israel and said to him, "Go, strengthen yourself, and plan what you must do, for at the return of the year, the king of will come up against you." The servants of the king of said to him, "Their is a of the hills; therefore they were stronger than we. But let's fight against them in the plain, and surely we will be stronger than they. Do this thing: take the kings away, every man out of his place, and put captains in their place. Muster an army like the army that you have lost, horse for horse and chariot for chariot. We will fight against them in the plain, and surely we will be stronger than they are." He listened to their voice and did so. At the return of the year, Ben mustered and went up to to fight against Israel. The were mustered and given provisions, and went against them. The encamped before them like two little flocks of young goats, but filled the country. A came near and spoke to the king of Israel, and said, " says, 'Because have said, " is a of the hills, but he is not a of the valleys," therefore I will all this great multitude into your hand, and you shall know that I am .'" They encamped opposite each other for seven days. Then on the seventh day the battle was joined; and the killed one hundred thousand footmen of in one day. But the rest fled to , into the city; and the wall fell on twenty-seven thousand men who were left. Ben fled and came into the city, into an inner room. His servants said to him, "See now, we have heard that the kings of the are merciful kings. Please let us put on our bodies and ropes on our heads, and go out to the king of Israel. Maybe he will your life." So they put on their bodies and ropes on their heads, and came to the king of Israel, and said, " Ben says, 'Please let me live.'" He said, "Is he still alive? He is my brother." Now the men observed diligently and hurried to take this phrase; and they said, "Your brother Ben ." Then he said, "Go, bring him." Then Ben came out to him; and he caused him to come up into the chariot. Ben said to him, "The cities which took from your I will restore. You shall make streets for yourself in , as made in ." "I", said , "will let you go with this ." So he made a with him and let him go. A certain man of the sons of said to his fellow by word, "Please strike me!" The man refused to strike him. Then he said to him, "Because you have not voice, behold, as soon as you have departed from me, a lion will kill you." As soon as he had departed from him, a lion found him and killed him. Then he found another man, and said, "Please strike me." The man struck him and wounded him. So the departed and waited for the king by , and disguised himself with his headband over his eyes. As the king passed by, he cried to the king, and he said, " went out into the middle of the battle; and behold, a man came over and brought a man to me, and said, 'Guard this man! If by any means he is missing, then your life shall be for his life, or else you shall pay a of silver.' As was busy here and there, he was gone." The king of Israel said to him, "So shall your be. You yourself have decided it." He hurried, and took the headband away from his eyes; and the king of Israel recognized that he was one of . He said to him, " says, 'Because you have let go out of your hand the man whom I had , therefore your life will take the place of his life, and your people take the place of his people.'" The king of Israel went to his house sullen and angry, and came to .
A public domain modern English translation, free to read and share. Notes and cards are EKLI’s own.
The world at this moment · The divided kingdom, 931 BC to 745 BC ›
Israel in the north and Judah in the south, often at odds, with Aram of Damascus as the immediate threat and Assyria growing in the distance.
- Aram of Damascus
- The immediate enemy for most of two centuries, close enough to raid every campaigning season and strong enough to take territory. Most of the wars in Kings that read like national emergencies are border wars with Damascus.
- Assyria
- Growing steadily in the distance. Shalmaneser III fights a coalition at Qarqar in 853 BC and his own inscription lists King Ahab of Israel among his opponents with two thousand chariots, the earliest Assyrian mention of an Israelite king. A later monument shows Jehu bowing and paying tribute. Assyria is not yet the destroyer, but it is already taking notes.
- Egypt
- Divided and unreliable, capable of the occasional raid, such as Shishak stripping the temple in Rehoboam's fifth year, but no longer an empire that governs the Levant.
- Further afield
- The Greeks adopt the alphabet, hold the first Olympiad by tradition in 776 BC, and begin to compose the Homeric poems. Rome is founded by tradition in 753 BC, a village of huts at this point. This is the century in which the classical world begins.